News

Atlanta, GA—Data on outbreaks of foodborne illness occurring in 2008 in the United States have been finalized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and released in a report. Officially titled “Surveillance for Foodborne Disease Outbreaks—United States, 2008,” and appearing in an edition of CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the document indicates that for the most recent year with complete disease data, 1,034 separate foodborne outbreaks were reported.

Farms that produce organic food are economically viable on a long-term basis, and are perhaps more profitable than conventional farms, according to new research. The study, conducted by the University of Minnesota and recently published in Agronomy Journal, analyzed 18 years of crop yields and other farm data. Findings included a lower risk of poor returns for organic corn and soybean crop rotations than for conventional rotations.

Austin, TX—Renowned in the field of pharmacognosy and a mentor to countless other researchers, Norman R. Farnsworth, Ph.D. passed away at the age of 81 at a Chicago hospital on September 10, after a period of declining health from congestive heart failure and type 2 diabetes lasting several months.

Ojai, CA—As communities struggle to regain a footing after Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee, Nourish America is providing needed support via $1.5 million in nutritional products donated by various companies. Throughout the Northeast and North Carolina, continuous heavy rain has meant record flooding and widespread evacuations, including a mandatory order for 100,000 to flee in preparation for Lee.

The natural products industry has been dissecting the proposed guidelines for new dietary ingredients (NDIs) since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) made them public in July. Last month, WholeFoods explained some of the technical parts of the document and what they could mean for supplement makers. But, there’s another side of the story: the human side, specifically how companies are reacting to the document.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) now has broader authority to levy fees for the re-inspection of imported food. The new fee structure comes as a result of certain sections of the recently passed Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), and some parties fear it may result in burdensome fees for small companies and in higher food prices.

Though they founded a pioneering mushroom supplements company called Mushroom Wisdom, president and CEO Mike Shirota and vice president Tomoko Nakamura are no mycologists (fungi specialists). Instead, they were initially inspired by a simple truth: mushrooms and the nutrients they contain can support many areas of human health.

Washington, D.C.—The Food Safety Modernization Act was signed into law on January 4 of this year, and one stipulation of that legislation was that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should increase its safety measures surrounding fresh fruits and vegetables. Since then, U.S. citizens have watched tainted vegetables become implicated in widespread illness in Europe. Now, FDA is announcing its plans to move forward with the required regulations.